He became particularly famous because it was discovered that he shared caricatures of Angela Merkel and Adolf Hitler. Now there is trouble again for Harald Burkart, head of the Berliner Junge Union. Because the regional association is considering taking regulatory measures.
He caused less of a stir with his political office than with his funny photos on Instagram and photo montages of former Chancellor Angela Merkel and Adolf Hitler. But his revealing appearance on social media also seems to be bothering the party, as the “Bild” newspaper now reports.
CDU accuses “Dumbbell Harry” of “behavior that is damaging to the party”.
“The regional association is considering imposing disciplinary measures against you because of behavior that is damaging to the party. “You are involved in several party court proceedings, some of which have received considerable public attention,” writes state managing director Dirk Reitze in a registered letter to the JU boss, who has become known as “Dumbbell Harry”.
But it is particularly the Merkel-Hitler photo montages shared via WhatsApp that are causing trouble in the party. CDU man Reitze complains: “The (…) pictures you shared denigrate the former Chancellor and party leader Angela Merkel in the worst possible way, including her in the role of the dictator of the German Reich, Adolf Hitler, on a customized film poster of the film ‘Downfall’.”
Burkart has to take a stand – otherwise there is a risk of further trouble
But there are other allegations against the sporty politician: Burkart is said to have violated the confidentiality of a party court procedure during a party conference in September 2023 and thus violated the CDU’s statutory law.
The Berlin CDU is now calling on Burkart to make an official statement on the allegations. The answer must be received by the regional association by 3 p.m. on Friday, March 1st at the latest, otherwise the JU boss will face further sanctions. So far he has at least not commented publicly on the allegations. Now he has to flex his head instead of his muscles.